Many repetitive manufacturing operations are now automatically performed by robotic systems. For example, a programmable mechanical arm may manipulate various types of end of arm tooling to drill holes, install fasteners or perform other types of manufacturing operations. In areas where space is limited or access is restricted, those same manufacturing operations may need to be performed by hand. Certain manufacturing operations, whether performed manually (e.g., by hand) or automatically (e.g., by a robot) create debris. In certain manufacturing environments, such as in the aerospace industry, debris created from a drilling operation can potentially cause damage to the manufactured article if allowed to remain. In order to ensure that all the debris created by the drilling operation is removed, the debris removal process is often performed manually. As such, considerable time and labor must be devoted to the removal of any debris following the drilling operation.
Accordingly, those skilled in the art continue with research and development efforts in the field of robotic systems configured to perform drilling operations.